Despite only being a four-star recruit and scoring less than 7 points per game in limited minutes during his freshman season at Memphis, Minott showed enough promising flashes that he ended up being a one-and-done, and was selected by the Timberwolves with the 45th pick of the 2022 draft.  At 6'9" with a 7'0" wingspan, Minott has good size for an NBA forward, although he could benefit by putting on more weight as he ages into his 20s. He is quick and explosive, and uses that athleticism to be a good transition player or a finisher off cuts. He had some highlight dunks in college. That athleticism translates more to defense right now than it does to offense, as Minott is disruptive by getting steals and blocks.   Minott needs to improve his skill to become a legitimate NBA player. He shot 14% from 3 in college, and has hit 32% of his 3s in the G-League and NBA thus far on a small sample size. Along with his poor shooting, he's not that comfortable putting the ball on the floor, especially in traffic. He's not a playmaker for others either, and doesn't have a great feel for finding the open man.  Minott did not get real minutes either of his first two seasons, playing in only 57 minutes of non-garbage time, according to Cleaning the Glass. He has been productive in the G-League though, scoring over 20 points per game on over 60% true shooting and grabbing nearly 7 rebounds. He got a little more time in '24-'25, but he was not in the regular rotation and only played 179 total minutes of non-garbage time across 33 games. Minott will still be only 22 years old as a potential free agent in 2025, so if the Timberwolves do give up on him, there's a chance another team would still believe in him and his development.

Minott has a $2.2 million team option for 2025-2026, and the Timberwolves may decline this option to make Minott a restricted free agent in 2024, rather than picking up the option and having Minott hit unrestricted free agency in 2026. If the Timberwolves decline the option, Minott will be a restricted free agent with a $2.7 million cap hold and Qualifying Offer. However, the Timberwolves could refuse to tender the QO, which would make Minott an unrestricted free agent in 2025. I don't think the Timberwolves will feel the need to lock Minott down on a long-term deal in 2025, and would expect them to simply pick up his option or let him walk in free agency. If his option is declined, other teams will have multiple ways to sign Minott as even teams without cap space could use any of the Non-Taxpayer MLE, Room MLE, or possibly even the Taxpayer MLE or Bi-Annual Exception to sign him to an offer sheet (although you rarely ever see offer sheets below the full MLE). However, Minott being a restricted free agent will greatly lower his interest among teams, as they will worry that the only way to pry him away from Minnesota would be to overpay him. If the Timberwolves don't give Minott a QO, this likely means he could be had for the minimum.

Jose Alvarado (4th year minimum option picked up, 2024) Chuma Okeke (1 year non-guaranteed minimum, 2024) Aaron Wiggins (5-1 years, $45 million, 2024)